Texas vs Beaumont
by hearthandhomeauthor
Summary: When a day at the mall turns deadly at the hands of a would-be shoplifter, Katheryn is falsely accused of a crime she didn't commit. While Walker and Trivette go undercover at a local high school, Alex, Carlos, and Trent must then work together to find out the truth and clear Katheryn's name before all of their lives are changed forever. / Legacy of Thunder series (no. 12)
1. Part 1

**_This installment in the saga takes place during the episode "The Principal" and shortly after._**

 **Texas vs. Beaumont** part one

"You know who sings great music?" Katheryn grinned as she forked in a bite of food, staring at Trent from across the table in the middle of C.D.'s.

"Who's that?" Carlos chimed in from beside Katheryn, drawing her gaze.

Katheryn swallowed before her smile returned. "Collin Raye."

"I would agree with that." Trent took a bite of his food before smiling a bit.

Katheryn gently settled into her chair, letting her fork drop quietly as she crossed her arms against her chest and shot wary glances from Trent to Carlos and then back again. "What?" Katheryn was beginning to get the feeling they were trying to keep something from her when she firmly rested her gaze on Trent. "Out with it."

Sighing and setting his own fork down, Trent looked to Katheryn with a bit of penitence in his eyes for stringing her along. "We may have met Collin Raye in the recent past."

"Excuse me?" Katheryn's eyes widen a bit.

Trent sighed in surrender. "He came to Dallas to help raise funds for a church that burned down because of a white supremacist group. Held a benefit concert just outside the church."

Katheryn shot a glance back to Carlos. "And all of you were there?"

Carlos cocked a gaze her way with a side-ways grin. "More or less."

"What's that supposed to mean?" She glared back.

Carlos shrugged and stared into her beautiful hazel eyes from over his coffee mug as he took a sip. It was mostly an effort to quell his laughter.

Katheryn rolled her eyes and chuckled lightly, leaning forward to pick her fork up and carry on with her meal. She forked in one bite and then propped both elbows on the edge of the table, cradling her chin in her interlocked fingers. "The only reason I brought it up is because I heard he was coming to town for a concert in a few weeks."

"Oh?" Carlos grinned. "You wanting to go?"

"Maybe." Katheryn hid a smile as she chewed.

"I bet with the connections Walker has we could do better than that," Trent winked.

"Really?!" Katheryn was beside herself as thoughts of meeting the famed singer shot through her mind at ninety to nothing. Then she thought about all that had happened in the guys' life since before she moved to Dallas. "Gosh. I feel like I've missed a whole lifetime with you guys."

Trent settled his glance on Katheryn, his eyes sparkling just a bit. "Well you're here now. And what matters the most is the lifetime to come."

"I suppose you're right." Katheryn smiled and returned to her meal.

"Trent's right, honey." C.D. beamed as he emerged from the kitchen and took a seat with the threesome and folded his hands on the table. "You just have to be thankful for the times you have together and make the most of the days to come. Speaking of," he paused and grinned a bit wider, patting Katheryn's hand softly. "I'm sure looking forward to this weekend, darling."

Carlos shifted his gaze between C.D. and Katheryn. "Wait, what's this weekend?"

"Well if you must know," C.D. grinned. "Katheryn here has agreed to sit down with me and write down some of the most memorable stories from my career as a Texas Ranger. She's going to make a book out of it and all."

"Oh, boy." Trent snickered, reaching for his coffee and taking a sip to hide a chuckle.

C.D. turned a stern glance between the two boys. "What's so dadgum funny?"

"Nothing." Carlos shoved in a bite of food before he was forced to say any more.

"Don't listen to them, Kath darling. I'm sure your book will turn out great."

"Oh, it's not the book I'm concerned about," Carlos countered, turning a broad smile between Trent and Katheryn. "More like the tall tales going in the book."

"Now you just hush that up right now, young man." C.D. pointed his finger at Carlos. "I'll have you know that I'll be telling Katheryn the God-honest truth."

"If you say so, C.D." Trent took a deep breath and backed away from his plate.

"Well, if you three would excuse me…" Katheryn stood, scraping her chair gently across the floor.

"Where are you off to?" Carlos asked, also putting some space between himself and the empty dishes on the table.

Katheryn started for the door, pausing in between the guys on the other side of the table. "I'm going to go pick up Tandy from her last day of school. We're going to the mall so that she can have her ears pierced as sort of an extra birthday present." Kath winked and smiled.

"Well," Carlos heaved a sigh as he rose to his feet. "I'll walk you out. I've got to meet with Walker and Trivette."

"Oh?" Katheryn settled her gaze on Carlos as he stood beside her.

"Yeah. I'm going undercover as Billy Gato to help take down a drug ring. He was planning a transaction when we caught him. But the other guys are still expecting him to show. Rumor has it that they might be selling to schools in the area."

"That's terrible." Trent sighed while glancing back down at his near-empty plate.

"Yup."

"Well, you two be careful out there." C.D. turned, waving behind himself in route for the kitchen. "I've got my own business to tend to."

"We will," Katheryn chuckled, slipping her arm through Carlos' as he offered. "He's a hoot."

"Yep. That he is."

Carlos then offered Kath a friendly escort to her crimson Corvette parked alongside the street in front of C.D.'s before they reluctantly parted ways for their subsequent afternoon tasks.

##

Katheryn and Tandy were just arriving to the second floor of the local mall when the large tower clock chimed the top of the hour. Kath sighed as she looked over to it while they passed it by. Four o'clock. Crowds of people flowed in and out of the stores on this Friday afternoon, causing Katheryn to think that maybe this wasn't the best day to have selected for a mall outing. But seeing the brightness in Tandy's eyes quickly reminded her that they'd brave the extra apologies to strangers as they weaved their way through the crowds to the jewelry store.

Coming to a stop with Tandy at the entrance of the jewelry store, Katheryn looked the girl in the eyes. "You ready?"

Tandy looked up to Kath with a smile and was just about to say yes when a man carrying a gun and a small oak box, sprang from the store, nearly overtaking Katheryn and Tandy as he broke through a crowd of people to his right and sprinted across the mall.

"Stop that man! He robbed my store!" A well-dressed lady in her fifties shouted as she hurried from the store, her spectacles toppling from her eyes as she outstretched her finger.

Katheryn deduced the situation quite instantly and practically tossed her handbag to Tandy, bending low with a half-smile as she gripped the little girl by her shoulders. "Tandy, you stay right here! Don't move from this spot."

With a final tight-lipped smile, Katheryn turned, broke into a sprint, and dodged a crowd of shoppers, ducking low once or twice as the runaway shoplifter got off a few shots at her. Kath tried tuning out the chaotic shouts and screams that caved in around her as she sped up in pursuit of the criminal. Just as she was closing in on him, he suddenly stopped and turned to fire three consecutive shots. Katheryn dropped to the ground and rolled herself behind a nearby vacant kiosk, drawing out her firearm from her side holster beneath her leather jacket. She waited for a break in gunfire before she stood up, both hands on her Smith and Wesson as she outstretched her arms and fired twice before returning to safety behind the kiosk.

As a bit of quiet fell into the moment of ceasefire, Kath heard a groan in the distance and slowly stood up from around the kiosk, her gun raised to the ready. Drawing closer to a shadowed space around the corner inside a vacant store, Katheryn saw the man lying on the ground with his arms sprawled wide on either side of him. She kept her gun held steady upon the man as she took each step with caution, bending low at the same time as a security guard arrived from the other side. The criminal was lifeless by the time Katheryn released one hand from her weapon to check his pulse. The security guard hovered over his own firearm as he tried to deduce the situation in his mind as quickly as possible.

"He's dead." Katheryn sighed, standing back up to holster her weapon. She then scanned his person for his weapon and the item he had stolen. Shock suddenly turned her face an unfamiliar shade of opal as she found nothing. "This doesn't make sense. He fired at me. His weapon should be near him. And he was carrying that jewel case as clear as day when he turned around to shoot at me."

"Ma'am," the security guard exhaled, reaching for his handcuffs as he came to his own conclusion. "I'm placing you under citizen's arrest for suspicion of murder. If you would come with me…."

"What?!" Katheryn took a step back, realizing she was about to resist arrest. "I'm a private investigator, sir. It was self-defense. Just ask anyone around here!"

"I'm sorry." The guard shook his head. "You'll have to come with me."

"What about the little girl I came with?! I can't just leave her here."

"I'll see to her," the guard replied firmly and glared at her. "Now if you would please turn around and put your hands behind your back."

Katheryn could feel the heat rising to her cheeks as she clasped her lips shut and turned around. She slipped her hands behind herself and blew upward from her mouth. What was happening? It was as if her whole world had gone into slow motion. Surely this guard didn't think she killed this man deliberately. She was at the mercy of some nightmare that surely she'd wake up from any second now. If only a witness would speak up. Katheryn glanced around to see everyone dispersing back to their necessary errands. Surely someone had seen it all unfold. But in all the chaos, Katheryn began to doubt even that. Still, none of this made sense. With her own eyes, she had seen the runaway criminal fall to the ground. He couldn't have gotten rid of his weapon and stolen goods that quickly. How could a good deed gone wrong result in her worst nightmare? All she wanted was that one call they would hopefully let her make. She was tempted to ask for a cell phone or change for a nearby payphone that very minute to call Trent. Yet she held back for fear she might make things worse than they already were.

The guard quickly confiscated her pistol before she heard the ratcheting of the cuffs around her wrists. After calling for police backup, he escorted her back across second story walkway, leading her right past Tandy who was being looked after by a female security guard. Katheryn could see the confusion and tears in Tandy's eyes as the guard led her across the interior length of the mall. Kath tried to smile to reassure her and hoped it would do some good. But confusion still drowned out her own thoughts as she was led away from the scene to the patrol car that arrived soon after. Somehow she prayed that she would recognize the officer who picked her up, but she didn't.

As she watched the majority of Dallas passed by, Katheryn tried her best not to let her emotions get the best of her. But it was all she could do to keep them in check while she tried to keep her mind on that one phone call she was allowed once they arrived safely at the police department.


	2. Part 2

**Texas vs. Beaumont** PART TWO

Shocked would have been one way to describe Katheryn's attitude as the police car came to a stop in front of the Tarrant County courthouse. It was both debasing and quite embarrassing as she was led between two officers up those familiar steps and through the doors she had been through so many times before on her way to Ranger Headquarters. Kath wondered silently if anyone there would recognize her and ask questions. For their own sake, she hoped they'd not say anything. It was a good thing Molly was away visiting her grandmother in Austin for a few days. As much as she needed rescuing, she didn't want to risk those she loved the most getting mixed up in all this. At the same time, to see Alex, Walker, or Trivette suddenly round the corner would definitely brighten her day. Then she remembered that Carlos was meeting with Walker and Trivette about an undercover takedown. That was nearly two hours ago. They might have already left.

Before Katheryn could sort her thoughts further, they had arrived to an interrogation room on the third floor. Its dark interior and narrow space sent chills through the young woman as she entered. Although she had not participated in many interrogations with Carlos or the Rangers, what few she had witnessed could not have prepared her for the feeling of being on the other side of the law. And she didn't like it very much.

Meanwhile in the Alex Cahill's office, the steady ticking of her desk clock could have nearly driven her mad had her phone not rang, piercing the silence and bringing her back to the realities of her requisites as the assistant district attorney. She quickly put the phone to her ear, stifling a sigh. "Alex Cahill." She smiled broadly as she recognized the voice. "Dad! How are you?"

"Doing well, darling," the muffled voice answered from the other end.

Alex then wrinkled her forehead with concern. "Is anything wrong?"

Gordon Cahill laughed. "No! Of course not! Why would there need to be something wrong for me to call my daughter on this beautiful Texas day?"

Alex tried not to show her surprise too much as she raised her eyebrows. "You didn't tell me you were in Dallas. When did you arrive?"

"Oh, just yesterday. Had a bit of business nearby and thought it nonsense for me to not stop in Dallas."

"How long are you here for?" Alex queried.

"That depends upon my daughter's schedule. You see, I have a standing reservation for two at a rather swanky Dallas restaurant. And I might have a few other surprises up my sleeve."

"Dad," Alex pleaded with a grin twisting at the corner of her mouth. "You didn't have to."

"Oh, nonsense! It's the least I could do."

A knock on her door brought Alex's gaze upward, her moment of escape stolen as District Attorney Mark Clark stepped inside her office, motioning behind himself with his thumb while widening his eyes. He had not said what was the matter in as many words, but Alex could tell by the rather stern look in the man's eyes that they had urgent business to attend to.

Alex nodded towards Mark and sighed. "Dad, I've got to go. But I will call you back when I get home tonight. Where are you staying?"

"The Marquis."

"Alright. I'll talk to you later. Bye, dad." Alex smiled and returned the phone to its home before she rose from her chair, gathering a file or two she'd need to set on Walker's desk before he returned from the sting operation with Carlos.

Alex was a bit confused when Mark told her to walk with him across the building. But she followed anyways, her mind preparing for whatever was to come. "So what's up?"

Mark exhaled as he open the file in hand. "We got a young lady. Early twenties. Charged with murder in the second degree. Says she didn't do it."

Alex shook her head, not moving her gaze from the hallway ahead of her. "Yeah. That's usually what most of them say."

"Yup," Mark chimed in just before rounding the corner into the first interrogation room on the left. He threw the file softly on the table as Alex slipped inside behind him.

Her eyes took a moment to adjust before shock took the place of assumption on her pale face. Stunned, Alex took a step forward, her gaze unmoved from the young woman seated at the opposite end of the table and guarded by a police officer on her right. "Katheryn?! What are you doing here?"

Mark's eyes darted from Katheryn to Alex, his hands propped on his sides as his voice wavered. "What? You two know each other?"

Alex scoffed, disbelief clouding her thinking for a split second before she answered. "Absolutely. Katheryn helps me run the H.O.P.E. center and is a private investigator along with Trent Malloy."

"So I guess I wasn't lying about that part after all." Katheryn's words were edged with a bit of sarcasm as she rolled her eyes upward towards the D.A. She had her arms crossed around her chest, remaining somewhat thankful that the police officer had graciously removed the handcuffs against the D.A.'s better judgment.

"What are you doing here?" Alex repeated, searching for Katheryn's eyes and answers to this anomalous incidence.

"She killed a man," Mark interrupted, his voice raised as he reached for the file on the table and nearly shook it in Alex's face.

"In self-defense!" Katheryn defended herself sternly. It was all she could do to keep herself seated. She knew an irregular outburst wouldn't help her situation much.

"Not according to this police report. It says here that the man you killed had no weapon or stolen property on him as you claim."

"But he fired at me first!" Katheryn sighed, and threw her head to the side. "Just go look at the bullet holes in the kiosk at the mall. Isn't that proof enough?"

"Who's to say you didn't plant them there?!"

"Alright!" Alex raised both her voice and her hand. "Clearly there has been some mistake."

"Just because she's your friend, Alex, doesn't mean she's innocent."

"Mark! I know this young woman. She would never do anything like that!"

"Yeah. It seems that some folks said that about you several years ago."

With another almost inaudible scoff, Alex glared at Mark. "Yeah. And it turns out they were right."

Mark was on the verge of surrendering, this whole ordeal seeming quite ludicrous to him. He tossed the file on the table again and turned up a raised eyebrow to Alex. "Well, I guess there's no point in asking you to prosecute this case."

"Yes, Mark. You can safely be sure of that." Alex held her ground.

"Then I suggest you look into getting Miss Beaumont the best lawyer in Texas. Because it's going to take one heck of a defense to prove this young woman's innocence."

Mark then stormed out the room, the door slamming into place and causing Alex and Katheryn to jump slightly. After Mr. Clark was clear from the view of the door's small window, Alex turned back to Katheryn. Both women felt a mutual numbness inside. A level of disbelief that their eyes silently conveyed to each other. For a moment, even Katheryn wasn't sure if she would be able to convince those closest to her of her innocence.

##

"Thomas Joseph Malloy!" Katie called from the feet of the stairs in the Malloy home as she dried her hands on a dish towel.

 _Oh, boy._ Tommy instantly remembered the can of root beer he had left in the freezer from Tandy's birthday party and came sprinting down the stairs, his eyes wide with shock. "You found it?"

Mrs. Malloy glared at her middle son, trying her best to quell the desire to turn him over her knee. "I would suggest you make your way to the freezer with a few towels and some cleaner. There's a decent little mess in there waiting for you." She ended her calm statement with a tight-lipped smile, extending her dish rag to him.

Tommy offered a feigned grin in return, almost chuckling lightly to ease the tension as he ambled past Katie and turned right towards the dining room entrance, cutting through to the kitchen.

Mrs. Malloy wanted to laugh but considered that against her better judgment and had nearly resolved to go help her son when the doorbell rang. She brushed away a stray lock of her hair as she made her way to the door, opening it with the dish rag still in her other hand and a smile still nipping at her lips. But the smile didn't last long when she saw a female police officer standing there with Tandy by her side.

Not seeing Katheryn as she glanced behind the officer to the patrol car alongside the street, Katie held back her emotion, preparing herself for whatever the officer was about to say. "May—may I help you?"

"Ma'am, this little girl was with a young woman at the mall earlier today. That young woman was arrested this afternoon."

Tandy sniffled as she hurried to her mother's side and held on as tight as she could.

Katie wrapped an arm around Tandy's head and looked back towards the polite officer. "Thank you. But—I don't understand. Why was Katheryn arrested?"

"Murder, ma'am." The officer looked down and away, clearly understanding how the news might affect the other person.

Mrs. Malloy was devastated to hear those words. She was almost sure she had heard the officer wrong. But in the following silence, she realized she had heard correctly. "I see. Where is she now?"

"With the local D.A. at the courthouse."

Katie hesitated for a moment before lifting up a smile. "Thank you for bringing my daughter home."

"You're welcome, ma'am." It was the officer who hesitated this time as she turned to leave. "If it's any consolation, I've heard about the good work your son does in Dallas. And if Miss Beaumont is a partner with him as she says, I don't think she could be guilty of murder."

"Thank you," Mrs. Malloy bid the officer good day before turning back inside, guiding Tandy gently as she shut the door behind them.

Tommy was a bit jovial as he ran softly through the dining room, past the stairs, and stopped next to Katie with a grin. "All cleaned up." He smirked, lifting the remnants of the soda can. "You want to recycle this one?" He then stopped and noticed the shared concern on his mom and sister's faces.

Tommy wrinkled his forehead with concern. "What is it?"

Mrs. Malloy sighed. "Katheryn was arrested for killing someone."

Tommy's face grew a bit pale, his eyes widening as his mouth fell open. "What?!"

Tandy nodded and sniffled, reaching a hand to grip her mother's. "It's true. A bad guy robbed a store at the mall and she chased him. But when she came back, she was in handcuffs."

Tommy's eyes narrowed as he scoffed. He then handed Tandy the dilapidated can, drawing a cringe from the young girl as he crossed to the door in a hurry.

Mrs. Malloy spun around to face him, the sunlight from the door causing her to squint as Tommy stepped a foot onto the veranda. "Where are you going, son?"

"To find Trent and tell him what happened."

"Alright." Katie nodded, knowing that nothing she said would change Tommy's mind. "Be careful."

"Will do." Tommy shut the door firmly and hurried out to his car. With a swift crank of the engine, Tommy backed out of the driveway and accelerated away from home with only one intention in mind. Justice.

##

The rather piercing sound of the penitentiary buzzer sent chills up Katheryn's spine as she was led through the white-washed corridors of the county jail. Her lips sagged into a frown and her mien showed the face of a girl who had experienced better days. Her hair was disheveled, held only barely at the base of her neck with a ponytail holder. A few rebellious locks waved in front of her eyes as she glanced to her right. They passed by a long line of cells where women of all ages stood with smiles and some with jeers at the new kid on the block. Then they came to a long glass window where Kath saw her reflection for the first time since being incarcerated. It was as if she was looking into the eyes of a stranger while staring at the rather intrusive brightness of her orange jumpsuit. Her gaze then drifted downward as the glint of the handcuffs around her hands drew her attention. It was then that a tear finally slipped out from beneath her lashes and ran down her emotionless face.

Finally jerking her head up as a heavy door slid open, Katheryn was escorted into the next room and led to the third section out of ten window bays there. The guard left without saying a word, leaving her to her own shattered thoughts.

Katheryn was the only one there she noticed, looking around the room and numbly taking a seat before truly noticing her own diminutive surroundings. Just as she glanced up to inspect the black telephone at her side, a door in the room on the other side of the imprisoning glass wall whirred open to reveal Trent. He was led to her window bay by a guard before he took the seat provided, thanking the guard and immediately searching for Katheryn's joyless eyes before he even reached for the phone. Trent finally picked up the phone, fixing his gaze on Katheryn as he waited for her to pick up on her end.

Swallowing the lump in her throat, Kath banished a tear from the corner of her eye and reached for the phone, struggling a bit with the handcuffs that held her bound before she finally had the device to her ear and was hearing Trent's voice from the other end.

"How are you doing?"

Katheryn struggled to look Trent in the eyes. She leaned forward, an elbow on the surface in front of her as she sniffed hard and willed away the tears. "Alright I suppose." Even her own voice seemed foreign to her. "Is Tandy okay?"

Trent nodded. "Yeah. Tommy came to the dojo and told me everything. An officer brought her home."

Katheryn returned to silence as the image of Tandy's gentle eyes watching her being led away in handcuffs pierced her inside once again. Kath turned away and tried not letting the tears show. Yet Trent knew better and noticed the falling drop before Katheryn had a chance to hide it. He allowed the silence to hang between them a moment longer as he thought through the situation.

"Tell me what happened."

Katheryn took a deep breath and turned back to face Trent. She lingered a moment, her gaze lowered while not shedding another tear. "Tandy and I had just arrived at the jewelry store on the second floor of the mall when a man came running out of the store. A couple seconds later, a woman stepped outside and starting screaming that he had robbed the store. I told Tandy not to move, and I chased after him. He then fired a gun at me. I ducked behind an empty kiosk before raising my gun to fire back. When he stopped firing, I approached him. That's when I saw that he was dead. And then a security guard arrived on the scene. When he saw no gun near the man, he arrested me."

"Are you sure you were fired upon?"

"Trent! Seriously?! How could a person mistake being shot at?!"

Trent sighed sharply and turned his head briefly. "How about the stolen items?"

"Those weren't there either." Katheryn waited a moment before she stared Trent in the eyes. "Tell me truth. Do you believe I'm innocent? If you don't…" Her words trailed off, the thought becoming more repulsive as Kath considered it.

"You know I believe you," Trent finally replied without a doubt in his mind. "And I _will_ find out the truth. There's clearly far more to this than we know."

Katheryn allowed herself to smile a bit. "Does Carlos know?"

"I called before I left the dojo. I'm guessing he went undercover not long ago. I left a message on his machine though."

Nodding, Katheryn took another deep breath, noticing the guard returning to take her back to her cell. "I guess this is goodbye for now."

"Yeah," Trent sighed. "I'll be back tomorrow." He smiled. "Keep your chin up. We'll get through this one."

"I hope so." Katheryn returned the phone to its rightful place before standing, looking Trent in the eyes one final time before the guard led her by the arm back to her cell and the nightmare she wished she could wake up from.

##

Alex sat staring at her telephone on the coffee table in her apartment for a good five minutes before she finally decided to pick it up and dial the Marquis, being quickly directed to her father's room. With undeniably distraught thoughts, Alex waited not able to get Katheryn's incarceration off of her mind.

"Hello?"

"Dad," Alex began with a sadness touching her vocal chords.

"Alex, dear! You just caught me. I was about to leave the hotel. And boy do I have one special evening planned for just the two of us."

"Dad," Alex repeated, letting a moment of silence fall for her to gather her thoughts. "I called to let you know I can't make it tonight."

"Oh? What's come up?"

"Katheryn Beaumont, a close friend of mine, was arrested today."

"I see. But what does that have to do with tonight? Surely you can get to that in the morning."

"Oh, dad," Alex smiled. "I would like nothing better than to get away. But I'd like to spend some time on this tonight. I've got to figure out how I can prove her innocence, dad. She of anyone I know is not capable of murder."

"My, my," Gordon cleared his throat as the magnitude of the charge weighed on his mind. "You're not prosecuting this case, are you?"

"Of course not, dad. I told the D.A. that first thing."

"Then who is her defense counsel?"

Alex exhaled sharply, a frown growing on her face. "She doesn't have one yet. I've called a few attorneys that I know. None seemed to be sure they could prove her innocence. It doesn't look good dad."

"Hmm," Gordon huffed and paced his hotel room in deep thought. He was a bit aggravated at the idea that an attorney wouldn't give a respectable young lady a chance to defend her own innocence. "I tell you what. There's a Chinese place not far from here. I'll grab some take-out and bring it over to your place. Maybe I can help you sort things out."

"That would be wonderful," Alex grinned before being stirred by a knock on her door. Her smile faded. "I've got to go, dad. I'll see you in a bit."

"Sure thing, pumpkin. Bye."

"Bye." A smile teased Alex's lips as she returned the phone to its rightful place and traced a straight path to her door. Alex noticed the time as she walked. Seven o'clock. She opened the door still somewhat unsure of who could be calling at this hour.

"Hey, Alex," Trent greeted Alex with a frail smile as he was revealed. "Is this a bad time?"

"Of course not!" Alex waved Trent inside. "Come on in."

Trent proceeded inside Alex's apartment with a curved grin and followed Alex to her sofa, taking a seat. "I thought I'd come by and discuss Katheryn's case. I finally got ahold of Carlos at his apartment before I came here. He had quite the day as a criminal."

Alex chuckled before the sentiment quickly faded. "At least the criminal he was acting as was actually guilty. How's he taking all this?"

"Yeah. Alright, I think. He said he would go visit her first thing in the morning."

Trent sighed and pictured Kath's tear-stained face as he leaned forward with his hands folded and his elbows propped on his legs. "Tell me the truth, Alex. Does she have a chance?"

Alex hesitated and took a deep breath. "Without a strong defense and solid proof, she could get life easily. We need to find out how his weapon disappeared."

"True, but even if we found that out, how would we prove the weapon was even there in the first place?"

"I don't know. There are so many missing pieces to this puzzle."

"That's the truth." Trent ran a hand through his hair while letting out an aggravated sigh.

"And it's up to the three of us to find out the truth and get Kath out of there for good," Carlos Sandoval announced as he stood at the threshold of the apartment, a grin twisting at the corner of his mouth.


	3. Part 3

**Texas vs. Beaumont** PART THREE

A rather slim, twenty-something brunette stood next to the shadowed window, her hair tied together at the base of her neck and gently lying on the collar of her jet black leather coat that curved against her tall figure. With her thumb hanging gently through her jeans' belt loop, the young woman watched as headlights bobbed up and down, approaching the little shack she had stayed at while Jack had gone away from their little hideout to see to their freedom.

The woman glanced at the clock. Midnight. She grinned a little despite being a bit aggravated at Jack for having taken so long. Finally, the sound of the car's breaks brought her gaze upward. She observed Jack powering down the car's engine, his camouflage jacket drooped over his well-worn jeans as he hurried towards the cabin with a laugh of his own tumbling from his lips.

"So, how did it go?" The brunette followed Jack around like a puppy as he aimed for the kitchen and a cup of cool water. It had been a rather long day.

"Wonderfully."

The woman grinned. "And Evans. He's dead?"

"As a doornail, Bonnie love." Jack chugged down the cup of water rather quickly, belching inwardly as he came to the last drop.

Bonnie cringed and began a saunter over to her bunk by the window. "Don't say that. I hate that phrase."

Jack laughed somewhat loud for Bonnie's taste before he started scrounging in the few cabinets for some dinner. "Eh, too bad we didn't have time to bring some liquor."

Bonnie crossed her arms at her chest and watched Jack for a second before she scoffed. "I've already looked. Nothing but a cup of stale flour and empty can of pinto beans."

"Looks like Evans made sure we'd be miserable after it all." Jack breathed a nearly inaudible curse as he slammed the door shut and spun on his heel to face Bonnie. He ran a hand through his hair and remained quiet enough to hear the crickets chirping outside. "I hope all this was worth it."

It was Bonnie's turn to laugh. She then stood and ambled over to Jack, throwing her arms around his neck. She eyed him for a kiss yet wasn't able to convince him of it entirely. "You aren't going soft on me are you?"

"Of course not," Jack grinned, drawing Bonnie into a passionate kiss.

As they reluctantly separated a moment later, Bonnie smiled. "So who was the victim?"

Jack laughed ever so lightly under his breath. "Some private investigator I think. I heard her say she was a PI when the cop was arresting her."

"You can't be serious! A PI? PIs have tons of connection with law enforcement."

Jack quelled Bonnie's doubt with a kiss on the cheek…then the neck. "Not to worry. The evidence is against her completely. She shot him. She's going to jail. End of story."

"You mean you never fired a shot?"

"Nope. Not one." Jack then neared Bonnie for another long kiss.

Yet quickly remembering why they were in Texas in the first place, Bonnie took a step back, pressing her hand against Jack's chest as she glanced down and then back into Jack's eager eyes. "There will plenty of time for fun once we're out of town. Now, I should pack."

"What do you have to pack?" Jack scoffed.

Bonnie looked over the single change of clothes and toothbrush on her bed.

Noticing the sadness in her eyes, Jack quickly came to Bonnie's side and squeezed her shoulder from behind. "I love you, Bonnie dearest. And I swear that as soon as we find the money Evans hid, I'll see to it you have all your heart desires."

Bonnie slowly turned to face Jack, revealing a tear-stained face and a gently-growing smile. She stroked Jack's cheek and cradled his face in her hands. "Have I told I love you lately?"

Jack wrapped his hand around Bonnie's, gently removing it from his face to press a kiss onto her soft skin. "You have. But I don't mind hearing it again."

##

Five containers of Chinese take-out lay strewn across Alex's round dining table next to the kitchen, having long been abandoned. Their empty interiors were no longer required as Trent, Carlos, and Alex now spilled over stacks of former cases, law books, and the current evidence written out on numerous pages of legal pad in front of them. Even Mr. Cahill had consented to stay and over dinner and see this through with the three of them.

Carlos was admittedly growing a bit tired as he propped his head up with his hand while his elbow supported the weight against the table. With his other hand, he flipped through a file of a case Alex had prosecuted five years ago. Both Alex and the defense counsel had come to an agreement after evidence came forward of the woman's innocence. She had been wrongfully set up as the perpetrator when she was really just another victim.

Alex hoped maybe some of these old cases that both she and other lawyers and attorneys had prosecuted or defended might help give them some clues or ideas. Some leads perhaps to guiding them to a decent starting point for their investigation. Still as she worked down her third cup of coffee, the stack of cases was growing smaller while even the faintest of answers was dwindling.

Trent meanwhile was busy writing all the evidence in clear format on a legal pad, his mind racing with possible angles to look at this situation from. The least liked of them all seemed to be the most prominent.

Having reached a breaking point, Trent dropped his pen, leaning forward to bury his face in his hands and rub back and forth. "This is getting us nowhere."

"Oh, come on now, son," Gordon Cahill paced behind Trent and Carlos seated next to each other. "Have a little faith."

"Thanks for the sentiment, Mr. Cahill," Carlos smiled up at Mr. Cahill. "But it isn't looking good."

Gordon Cahill's mouth opened, astonishment gleaming from his eyes as he laid an arm on each of the boys' shoulders rather firmly, drawing both of their startled gazes. "What is this I hear? I've barely known you two for three hours. And already I can tell I'm looking at the best cop and PI this city has to offer. So don't be going and telling me how bleak things are. If anyone can help get that girl out of prison, it's you two."

With this encouraging thought in mind, Carlos turned back to the stack of files he had just completed searching through and paused, thinking this through a bit better. "You know, maybe we should take a look at the ballistic reports a bit closer when they come in."

Trent wrinkled his forehead, turning to Carlos. "Kath was pretty sure she was the one that shot the man."

"Yeah, I know," Carlos sighed. "But a thorough look wouldn't hurt any."

"Is an autopsy being done?" Alex questioned, glancing up at the detective from her place on the sofa across the apartment.

"I don't know. With the rather solid evidence, I doubt if the presiding officer would have ordered one to be honest."

Mr. Cahill paused next to Carlos. "You think you could change their minds about that?"

Carlos looked up into the eyes of a man who had a rather subtle twinkle in his eyes. He grinned. "Yeah. I'll see what I can do."

Alex smiled as she watched with amazement. She never thought she would see the day her father would have gained such confidence back. Yet she should have known better. It was her own father that had worked to prove her innocence. With a sudden sense of renewed hope, Alex snapped her fingers in the air. "Dad, why don't you be her defense counsel?"

Gordon hesitated, drawing away from the boys and pacing the room, harboring doubtful thoughts as he mumbled under his breath. "I don't know, Alex honey."

"Dad!" Alex grinned, cocking her head softly. "You just told Trent and Carlos to have a little faith. Can't you have some yourself?"

Gordon scoffed, a smile tempting his doubtful demeanor. "You got me there, sweetheart. Still, I was planning on staying in the city for just a few days. I may not be poor, but a hotel bill like that just isn't pretty."

"Oh, I'm sure Walker would let you stay at his ranch," Alex insisted.

Trent nodded. "Yeah. And we could get away out there to discuss the case more away from all the hustle and bustle of Dallas."

"Sounds good to me," Carlos chimed in, grinning broadly.

Gordon Cahill could only laugh to himself, thinking of how quickly the youngsters had turned the tables on him. He lifted his hands in surrender and smiled. "Alright! I'll stay and defend Katheryn."

"Thank you, sir," Carlos reached behind him for a handshake. "You don't know what this means to me."

Mr. Cahill shook Carlos' hand vigorously. "Oh, I think I do, young man," he winked quickly before casting a smile over the entire group, pausing to look his daughter in the eyes as if to say, _Everything will be okay._

##

Although the past weekend had afforded him some time off to dig into Katheryn's case, helping Alex and Trent begin to figure this whole confusing thing out, by the time Monday came back around, Carlos was forced to set his personal thoughts aside and remember that they still had a drug ring problem in the city. The drugs were still being circulated to the local high schools by the hand of someone they had yet to discover.

Dialing the local high school principal's office per the number Walker had left before going undercover, Carlos waited, balancing his thoughts about these two cases at hand in his mind.

"Mr. Miller," Walker answered the phone.

"Walker, it's Carlos."

"Hey, Carlos. What's up?" Walker's muffled voice echoed through the device.

"I just had a jailhouse chat with our friend Mojo Burke."

"And what did he have to say?"

"Well, I got a name on the guy who's taking over Mojo's operation. Donny Thompson."

"Donny Thompson," Walker repeated, thinking the name over silently. "Do you know where he is?"

Carlos shook his head. "Working on it."

"Alright. Keep me posted."

"You got it." Carlos hung up the phone and was about to begin a string of phone call investigating when the door to the office suddenly opened.

"Hey, Carlos," Theresa Kelly announced, leaving the door to the shared DPD office open to the various phones ringing and commotion outside. "Those ballistic reports you asked for came in." She laid a file on Carlos' desk before situating herself at her own desk across from him.

"Thanks." Carlos smiled up at his partner as he reached for the file and immediately began looking it over. He quickly recognized the type of gun as the murder weapon, having vividly remembered helping Katheryn select her weapon of choice just a few short months ago. He smiled as he recalled that day in his mind. He also let out a chuckle, not realizing he had been heard.

Theresa looked up from her computer with a grin. "What's so funny?"

Carlos shook off the reverie, his face a bit red from the short laugh. "Oh, nothing."

"Could have fooled me," Theresa scoffed. "Especially when you're reading information that could potentially send your girlfriend to prison permanently."

Carlos shook his head. "It's not that. I was just thinking about the day we went to a gun store to pick her out a weapon."

"Oh, I see." Theresa understood quite well now, and turning back to her computer, she pecked a few keys and then gave Carlos her full attention with her hands folded against her desk. "Do tell."

Carlos laid the file aside briefly and smiled. "Well, it was about two months ago about a week after you started working for the department. You remember when Kath was on that stakeout where we found that body?"

Theresa nodded, her smile urging him to go on and cut to the chase.

"Anyways, the whole thing got me to thinking that she should start carrying a firearm. It wasn't that she couldn't handle herself. She's an excellent martial artist. I just felt that she should carry more often than not."

Theresa nodded again. "So your first date was in a gun store?"

Upon sharing a laugh that was more sarcastic on his part than her part, Carlos exhaled as more memories filtered through his mind. "No. We've been dating since the beginning of the year for your information."

"Oh," Theresa remarked with a single raise of an eyebrow. "Wait a second. So you've been dating the same girl for over a week?"

"Yup. Just over three months if I'm not mistaken. Anyway…" Carlos cleared his throat before continuing, but he was interrupted yet again by his phone ringing. With a roll of his eyes, Carlos reached for the ringing menace. "Detective Sandoval."

Detective Kelly tried to deduce the nature of the call but had a hard time doing so as she listened.

"Alright," Carlos scooted his chair back and stood to his feet. "Thank you."

Theresa rose by impulse too. "Where we going?"

"The autopsy results are in. I'm going to meet Trent and Miss Cahill. Would you mind staying behind and doing a little more digging for Donny Thompson?"

"Sure thing." Theresa nodded and retook her seat at her desk, watching briefly out of the corner of her eye as Carlos hurried from the office. The intensity of Carlos stride told Theresa that he must have received some rather crucial news.

##

These days, Katheryn's hours seemed to be filled with nothing more than excess boredom and waiting for the next visiting hour when Carlos or Trent would keep their promise to come see her. This was the case except for the occasional diversion that was the daily mail delivery. So far, Katheryn had collected a beautiful crayon-drawn picture of her along with the entire Malloy family. Or so Tandy had said according to the note she had included with her work of art. She had even managed to squeeze in Roscoe, Adam, Carlos, Miss Cahill, C.D., and the Rangers. Moses had even made a special appearance. Mrs. Malloy had also sent a letter of encouragement Kath's way filled with nuggets of love and just the right verses of Scripture to get her through each day. And just today, Katheryn received her first letter from Molly. Trent had told her how distraught Molly had been when he first called to tell her of Kath's plight. And every bit of Molly's subsequent letter conveyed those same feelings along with her heart-felt motherly side as she poured the love of a sister from her heart to pen and paper. It was also during this same day that Kath's cell mate received a letter of her own that had her in increasingly good spirits.

Like Katheryn, Gail was the new kid on the block, and the orange jumpsuit provided them tended to hide whatever good features of their countenance that they had took pride in before entering incarceration. Kath had quickly found out that Gail was more guilty than innocent and had not felt very safe in the twenty-four year old's company since she tried cornering her the first night they spent in the cell together. Now that several days had passed and Gail knew that Katheryn wasn't a threat, they were now at least being civil to each other. Katheryn just prayed that Carlos wouldn't ask about the bruise near her eye. It had all been just a simple misunderstanding. She didn't want Carlos or Trent making any rash decisions on her own account simply because their emotions got the best of them.

As Katheryn sat at their meager table reading through Molly's letter for the second time, a gentle smile caressing her tired features, she noticed Gail as she sat across from her, twirling the tip of her brunette locks around her finger while she laughed a little over a section of her own letter she had received.

Looking up from Molly's letter with a frown, Katheryn cocked her head gently. "What is it, Gail?"

Gail turned up her nose slightly at the rest of the letter and shoved it back in the envelope. "Just some mushy stuff from my husband," her raspy voice echoed between them.

"What was so funny?"

"Oh, nothing. Just something he said."

"Well, of course, but…"

"Drop it, sunshine!" Gail shook her fist in Kath's face, her eyes glinting defensively. "We may be on decent terms now. But we ain't kissing cousins!"

"Okay," Katheryn surrendered with a lift of her hands. She quickly stood and stooped into the lower bunk to tuck her treasured letter away where no one would find. At least that was her fading hope as she cast a glance behind herself to Gail who sat rereading her letter and grinning.

"Nothing, my foot!" Katheryn whispered under her breath.

Gail leaned back, clearing her throat. "What was that?"

"Nothing!" Kath punched her pillow down before she crawled into the rather uncomfortable bed to dream of a perfect day with her friends. She had just barely gotten comfortable and had almost drifted to sleep when she felt a finger poking her in the back. She turned over in a rather grumpy mood and swatted the hand away. "Get away, Gail. Leave me alone, and I'll leave you alone."

Gail scoffed, almost smiling a bit. "Hey, sunshine. Come on. I want to talk to you about something!"

"What?" Kath sat up in the bed the best she could, watching to be sure she didn't slam her head into the top bunk. When her eyes finally adjusted back to the light, she saw Gail towering over her with a smirk. "What do you want?"

"Hey," Gail gently punched Katheryn in the arm. "I know I've been kinda hard on you…"

Katheryn nodded and scoffed. "Yeah, this shiner is proof enough of that!"

Gail sighed and was almost tempted to forget the whole thing but held her ground. "Would you just listen?"

Katheryn nodded, relaxing a bit as she crossed her arms at her chest and looked up into Gail's rather uninviting blue eyes.

Gail looked at the door with caution before she continued. "My boyfriend is coming tonight. He's going to get me out of here. And, um, despite your few character flaws, I might be convinced to ask him to let you come along."

Feeling somewhat stunned, Katheryn scoffed. "What?! You've got to be out of your mind, Gail! I'm innocent. Running away will give the judge a chance to believe I might be guilty." Katheryn turned away. "Besides, I've got some good friends who are working to prove my innocence."

"Yeah, right." Gail rolled her eyes and sauntered back to the table, kicked at the metal chair, and then plopped down in the seat with a rather harsh sigh.

Katheryn watched Gail out of the corner of her eye for a moment, thinking to herself that in some weird way, this was Gail's twisted way of being friendly. Also, if there was a jailbreak being planned, maybe it was better she learned more about the planned spring.

After double thinking once or twice, Katheryn threw the covers off herself and crossed the room back to Gail and reclaimed her own chair. "Hey, Gail."

Gail spun around, her face stern but tear-stained as she limply held her letter between two fingers. "What?!"

"I, um," Katheryn cleared her throat, "I was thinking about what you said. And you know, it's looking pretty bad for me too. My friends probably don't even care about me anymore." Katheryn lowered her voice and stooped a bit closer to Gail, having gained the girl's full attention by now. "So, I was hoping you'd forgive me and let me in on the jailbreak."

"Well," Gail smirked, "I don't know about that forgiving part. But I'll see if I can't work it out for you."

Katheryn smiled. "Thanks."

"No problem, kid."

Katheryn tried not to let her true feelings toward that rather debasing conversation show on her face as she grinned and offered Gail a handshake which was denied. With a raise of her eyebrows, Katheryn returned to her bunk and settled in. But she wouldn't get much sleep tonight, she concluded. There was too much riding on whatever she had just gotten herself into to be sleeping right now.

* * *

 ** _This part contained a nice weaving of both WTR's "The Principal" and the world of_** **Sons of Thunder** _ **in the third scene. The short phone conversation between Walker and Carlos is taken right from "The Principal" before leading into his chat with Detective Kelly. I was rather pleased with the outcome and hope you all enjoy connecting the dots. God Bless, 'Kath'**_


	4. Part 4

**Texas vs. Beaumont** PART FOUR

A cloud of dust settled just behind Carlos' police-issued sedan as he came to a halting stop in Ranger Walker's driveway, climbing from the vehicle almost a fraction of a second after turning of the ignition. As the twilight sunset shadowed the ranch, Carlos ran past the pasture fence, Alex's car, and Trent's blue beauty before he skipped a few steps leading up to the porch and came to a stop at the front door to rap a few rudimentary knocks. Trent answered the door in a couple of seconds, leading the way into the living room where Alex and Mr. Cahill sat pouring over the same information as before, thinking through the situation and evidence at hand while also laying out their defense for Katheryn. The hearing was scheduled only four days away. Plenty of time for some it seemed. But not nearly enough to the four gathered in Walker's home that afternoon.

Trent retook his seat on the sofa next to Alex while looking up at Carlos who seemed to have something on his mind as he paced the area leading into the foyer.

"I've got some news."

Alex's frown slowly morphed into a half smile. "I sure hope it's good news, Carlos. We haven't accomplished very much today."

"Oh it's very good news," Carlos said with a raised eyebrow and a smile he couldn't quite hide.

"What?" Trent urged, agitated that Carlos would keep them in the dark this long.

"The autopsy report came in. Katheryn did kill him. But there was evidence of him having fired a gun left behind on his hands."

"That's great!" Trent grinned. Relief was one way to describe his current state of emotion as he added that bit of news to his own mental investigation. "So," he stood to his feet and paced to the opposite end of the living area near the fireplace, "we now have proof that he fired the weapon. But we now have to figure out where his gun went. It couldn't have just disappeared into thin air."

"Yeah," Alex sighed. "We may have a better chance at proving it was self-defense now. But it would be a lot more solid if we had a suspect right now. The only explanation is that there had to have been someone else there on the scene when the shooting was taking place."

"Yeah," Carlos frowned, still feeling a bit forlorn about the whole thing as he gazed down at the rug below him. He then snapped out of it, sighing sharply as he looked at his watch. "I need to get going if I'm going to make visiting hours. I promised Kath I'd go see her today. But with all this Donny Thompson business, I haven't seen her as much as I'd like."

"You want a ride?" Trent asked.

"Thanks, bud. But I'll just go alone this time."

Trent nodded, fully aware that Carlos was desiring to see Katheryn alone right now. And with all the stressful things going on between the twosome, Trent knew it would do Carlos and Katheryn a lot of good.

"Stay safe," Trent called out as Carlos turned to leave.

"Will do!" Carlos yelled over his shoulder and hurried back to his car. If he was quick, he would make it in time for at least a few short minutes with the young woman he loved and wished he could rid her of her nightmare in a heartbeat.

##

Having been given a rather scant amount of blank paper and a pen that had clearly seen better days, Katheryn tried counting her blessings and chose to use the minutes until visiting hours to write a letter to Molly. If she knew her best friend as well as she thought she did, Katheryn knew Molly would be very concerned. She just hoped this letter would get to her as fast as it could to help alleviate her fears.

Katheryn was sitting on the bottom bunk of the shared prison cell bed when the straight-faced warden made her nightly walk past the cell. She ran a calloused hand along the cell bars and drew their gazes. "Lights out early, girlies!"

One glance at the clock outside the cell sent confusion through Kath as she leapt from the bed, leaving her letter in disarray. She hurried to catch the warden before she continued to the next cell. "Wait! What do you mean lights out? How about visiting hours?!"

The lady shook her head. "Nope. Sorry, girly. But the head warden was warned of some suspicious activity outside the gate. We're just tightening up the security just in case. Maybe some visitors tomorrow if you're lucky."

Katheryn relaxed against the cells bars, her hand still gripping a single one as she pressed her face against them. She could feel the emotion building inside herself as she frowned, her mind cluttered with more confusion than it was worth.

"Don't worry, kid," Gail smiled from the top bunk.

Kath looked up at the felon with a bit of a smirk.

"Tonight will go smooth as silk."

And that was exactly what Katheryn was concerned about.

Gail noticed her saddened expression and scoffed. "You must like that guy that comes around here a lot."

Katheryn nodded where Gail could see, but admitted silently that wasn't entirely why she would miss visiting hours tonight. It would have been her only chance to warn Carlos or Trent about Gail's supposed jailbreak. She prayed the tightened security was a sign that Gail's boyfriend had perhaps gone too far. Maybe they wouldn't try anything tonight after all.

Surrendering, Katheryn crawled back into her bunk and took back up with her letter writing. She also set to praying as quietly as she could. It would be a long night, she concluded, realizing that whatever she would have to face tonight, she'd have to face alone. And the idea wasn't the most welcome one of them all.

##

Coming to a stop at the prison gate with a glance at his watch, Carlos exhaled, relieved that he had made it in time. As he watched an officer check the ID of the person in front of him, he also noticed that there was quite a few more guards on the outside than typically was posted. The brake lights of the car in front him suddenly went off and flashed on again as the car was allowed to turn around and leave, the gate never opening.

Carlos pulled up to the officer and flashed his badge. "What is the extra security about?"

The officer seemed to ignore his question as he scanned Carlos' badge. "I'm sorry, detective, but no visitors are being allowed tonight. Extra security measures. If you have business to attend to, I can let the head warden know."

It all seemed rather odd to Carlos, but he complied with a nod, drawing his badge back to himself and putting the car into drive. "Alright. Thank you."

He too followed the same path as the car before him, putting some distance between himself and the prison before parking alongside the distant roadside. Maybe he was being a bit overprotective with Katheryn being inside. But something didn't quite feel right.

"Hey, what's up?"

Carlos nearly dropped his binoculars, jumping clear out of his skin as he turned to see Trent staring through the open passenger side window. "Trent! Don't do that!"

Trent smirked. "You didn't hear me drive up behind you?!"

Carlos returned his gaze through his binoculars. "Afraid not." He lowered them again. "What are you doing here anyway?"

"I was on my way home and saw your car parked here."

"Oh," Carlos sighed and turned back to look out his window. "Something doesn't feel right, Trent."

Trent opened the passenger side door and climbed in, gazing intently over Carlos' shoulder to the prison grounds. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know. I've never seen that officer who checks ID. And there's way too many guards posted outside than usual. And the department would have received word if there was a security breach."

"Maybe they just haven't gotten word to you yet."

"Maybe. Still, I guess with Kath being on the inside…" Carlos' words trailed off into a sharp exhale.

"Hey, what's that?" Trent pointed to two guards who were engaged in some conversation of sorts.

Yet as Carlos centered his binoculars on the twosome, he quickly realized that they were not just merely conversing. One guard handed the other what appeared to be a handful of grenades while the other seemed to nod up to another guard on a hill nearby as if to give a go-ahead signal.

"Somethings going down." Carlos handed Trent the binoculars.

"You're right."

Both Trent and Carlos exited the vehicle at the same time and crouched low as they hurried over to a cluster of trees that was nearest the prison before reaching the open fields just before the gate. Carlos drew his gun while Trent continued to watch the guards' progress through the binoculars.

"We should call for backup, Carlos. Whatever this is, we can't handle it all on our own."

"But what if we're too late? I don't want Kath to get caught up in this."

"We'll just have to take that chance," Trent sighed, reaching inside his coat pocket for his cell phone. He dialed for Ranger Headquarters as quickly as possible. "We'll be no good to Katheryn if we get hurt too."

After successfully getting word to the Rangers, Trent looked once more through the binoculars. All guards were armed and ready as if awaiting a signal.

"Got any smart ideas while we wait?" Carlos raised an eyebrow, turning to Trent in earnest. "Do you expect me to just sit here and do nothing?"

"Absolutely not," Trent smiled mischievously from the corner of his mouth. "But we have to be sure something's going down first."

"Yeah."

Suddenly, a cluster of guards stormed into the front gate and hurried inside towards the prison, opening fire on three other prison guards that emerged from the prison. The remaining guards outside scattered, surrounding any and all little chances for escape around the perimeter.

"Let's go!" Trent shouted over his shoulder and broke into a sprint in good faith that Carlos would follow.

The twosome came to their first two guards in moments. Trent took down one with a bit of hand to hand combat before two consecutive roundhouse kicks finally did him in. Carlos battled his supposed guard for a bit longer but finally overtook him with a couple punches to the face before the two hurried past the unconscious criminals to follow alongside the outer prison fence to whatever awaited them nearer the prison. Two more "guards" tried preventing that but quickly found out their efforts were futile after meeting the bottom of Trent's shoes on their faces.

With an exchange of smiles, Trent and Carlos hurried into the now open gate of the prison. Gunshots continued to echo around them in the distance. They didn't have time to stop as they plowed inside the meager shelter of the prison. But they knew that they had just passed by at least three dead bodies. Two were prisoners.

As they reached the end of the hall and were just about to turn towards the first set of cells, a prisoner's bright orange jumpsuit startled them, the woman with it pointing a nine millimeter right in their faces. Both of her hands were wrapped firmly around the weapon, and the boys somehow sensed she knew exactly what she was doing.

She pointed the pistol at Carlos. "Drop the gun, handsome."

Carlos slowly set the gun on the floor, lifting his hands without taking his eyes off of the fiery-eyed brunette.

"Turn around!" she shouted.

Trent and Carlos reluctantly did as bid and started walking as the girl pressed her weapon into each of their backs, back and forth, before they came to an opened cell.

Carlos didn't care much about the gun at his back as he suddenly saw Katheryn lying lifeless on the floor inside the cell. He leapt forward and crouched low to check her pulse. Finding she was still alive and breathing, he gathered her into his arms and called her name over and over until her eyes fluttered open against the light she could feel piercing her eyes.

"Carlos?!" Katheryn looked up to see Carlos over her.

"This is touching and everything," Gail continued pointing her weapon between the threesome. "But I've got a jailbreak to attend to. Get in there!" She shoved Trent inside and then slammed the cell shut, locking it as fast as possible before she disappeared around the corner in the wake of chaotic shouts from the other prisoners to free them too. Gail only freed a few of them along the way before a few more gunshots in the distance died down and left what quiet they could be thankful for.

Katheryn smiled, her eyes still barely open as she saw Trent and Carlos surrounding her. "It's good to see you guys. Did you bring a dish?"

After his light chuckle faded, Trent noticed one world class bruise on the side of Kath's head and a small laceration on her lip. "What happened?" He turned around and ripped some of the thin bedding apart to use as a bandage while Carlos held her up.

Katheryn swallowed hard, working to catch her breath. "I tried to stop Gail from escaping. But she and her boyfriend got the jump on me…as you can see." She chuckled but coughed some.

"Just take it easy," Carlos consoled, brushing some of her blonde hair from her eyes. "Help should be coming soon."

Katheryn finally relaxed in Carlos' arms, realizing she was safe for now as she felt a throb seize her head. Despite the physical pain and the doubts her future still contained, there was no doubt in her mind that she was safe from the nightmare that she had been forced to live in these past several days.

About twenty minutes passed before Ranger Hunt's familiar face appeared on the other side of the jail cell accompanied by Detective Kelly and two other DPD officers besides those who were currently working to get the prison back under order. A female warden was also there to unlock the cell for the other law enforcement officers.

"I see you got yourselves locked in the pokey." Ranger Hunt grinned, stooping low to check on Katheryn. "What happened?"

"She tried stopping her cell mate from escaping," Carlos replied.

Now fully alert, Katheryn smiled towards Carlos. "Can you help me up? I think I can manage on my own."

"Sure." Carlos stood and extended his hands to help Katheryn to her feet.

Katheryn then let Carlos draw her into an embrace, knowing that in just a few fleeting seconds he'd be leaving her again.

After uttering something in Kath's ear that only she could hear, Carlos reluctantly let her go and followed Ranger Hunt and Trent out of the cell for the warden to lock the door. Katheryn seemed in better spirits. But the pain of seeing her hope slip again from her fingers twisted inside of her as she watched the warden turn the key, the lock clanging into place as if to keep her there for good.

"I'll send a doctor in here as soon as we get things under control," the warden assured Ranger Hunt and Carlos before continuing on to check the other cells.

"Carlos." Katheryn pressed herself near the cell bars and slipped Carlos a note.

After taking the note and quickly putting it in his pocket, Carlos stepped closer and offered the faintest of smiles. "We may have a lead."

Katheryn smiled. "That's great. What is it?"

"The man you shot and killed had residue left on his hand from firing a gun."

Katheryn frowned. "But that isn't very strong evidence. The jury would just…"

"Alright!" The head warden arrived, her blazing voice tearing into the thin air as she shooed them all out. "This is prison, people! Go somewhere else to socialize."

Katheryn reached for Carlos' hand by near impulse. He held her gaze for a brief moment, both of them trying to imagine themselves under far different circumstances. All Katheryn could picture was just the two of them…together…enjoying a starry night by Lake Welch. Yet that would have to wait for what seemed like a very long time from where she currently stood.

Carlos was forced to quickly let go and follow Trent at his urgings for them to leave. Getting on the warden's bad side wouldn't make their frequent visits any easier if they were frowned upon every time they came. Besides, the sooner they left, the sooner he could find out what Katheryn had told him in her mysterious note.


	5. Part 5

**Texas vs. Beaumont** PART FIVE

Despite her supposedly heroic efforts, Gail was the only inmate to successfully escape the prison grounds, leaving behind in handcuffs the "guards" that Jack had sent to aid her. Most of them were hauled away in the back of numerous police vehicles while the few inmates she had freed for insurance were captured soon after and put right back in their cells on the spot. Meanwhile, she was left on foot, frequently finding shelter in brush along the way as law enforcement searched the surrounding area of the prison for her. It was twenty-six miles to the hideout, Jack had explained in his letter. Gail estimated she could get there by the middle of the night if she stepped up her pace. But if she had to hide every so often, she hoped she could at least make it there by daybreak. Right now her only friend was the darkness. Once daylight returned, she would be seen by everyone, making her escape useless. If only she could have managed a change of clothes, that would have been nice.

##

 _Carlos: I got a glimpse of Gail, my cellmate's letter. Her supposed boyfriend's name is Jack, and they have a hideout twenty miles east of Fort Worth. Hope this will help. Love, Kath._

Carlos fingered Kath's note as he heaved a sigh and ran a hand through his hair. Glancing up to see the clock strike seven in the morning, he leaned forward at the edge of Trent's desk in Thunder Karate's loft office unsure what he should do. Katheryn's cellmate had managed to evade the search parties, leading to nothing but this bit of information from Kath to go by. Tossing the note on the desk in front of Trent, he exhaled. "I know Kath wants to help us find this escaped prison mate of hers. I just don't see what this has to do with helping _her_."

Trent closed his laptop, having finished his police report on a minor case he had handled within twenty-four hours. He pushed it to the side before lifting Kath's note from the table. "Yeah. You think she knows something that we don't?"

"Maybe," Carlos shrugged. "But I think she would have told us all she knew."

Within the timespan of a couple silent seconds, Carlos suddenly rose from his chair with force, almost tossing his chair with a scrape against the floor. Trent watched as he paced to the sunlit window above them, anger tempting his every action as he quelled it within.

"I can't stand seeing her in there, Trent," Carlos confessed, still facing away from his best friend. "And she's innocent! When I saw that bruise on her face, I could have helped her escape out of there that very moment. And seeing the look in her eye when they locked that cell door behind us…" He couldn't say another word but simply turned around to face Trent. "We've got to get her out of there, Trent."

"I know," Trent nodded. "But without sufficient evidence…"

"Who cares?!" Carlos let those sharp words flow from his mouth, instantly regretting it. He lowered his gaze, glancing over the dojo below as he leaned against the railing. "I—I'm sorry, Trent. I just really want to see her out of there."

Trent's only response was a slow, understanding nod before he stood to his feet, reaching for his leather jacket. "Let's go."

"Where we going?" Carlos was right behind his best friend as he hurried to keep Trent's pace on his descent down the loft stairs.

Trent paused at the foot of the stairs, turning back briefly. "To the mall." A twinkle in his eye slowly turned into a smile before he creased his forehead, reading confusion all over Carlos' face. "What? You didn't know I needed some new jeans?"

With a chuckle on his breath, Trent started forward and around the corner, leaving Carlos behind to deduce his comments. Shaking it off, he too hurried to catch up, just barely making it into the passenger side of Trent's Stingray before Trent sped away and towards the mall in a rather eager hurry.

Arriving at the mall, they quickly found the scene of the crime and glanced around, beginning their investigation of the area. There was nothing there except the bullet-ridden kiosk and the vacant store just as Kath had told them. After forensics had completed their job, the scene had been entirely swept clean with no bloodstains or even a footprint left behind.

"Well," Carlos sighed, "I wish I knew exactly what we were looking for here."

"Me too," Trent agreed as he paced ahead of Carlos to peer around the next corner where a short hall led to some employee-only storage facilities.

"See anything?"

Trent shook his head, a frown completing the gesture. "Nope."

Returning to Carlos, he stood next to him, both of them gazing towards where Katheryn had said the body had been while a few passersby gave the twosome thorough once-overs. Carlos managed a few nods, smiles, and how-do-you-dos to lighten the tension of seeing two strangers staring at an empty mall store. He could only imagine how ridiculous they looked.

"Well, if you don't mind, I think I'll see if this place has a good sale on Hawaiian shirts before we leave."

Trent cocked a smile. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I'll need to look the part when I break Kath out of jail and we escape to some remote Caribbean island that no one's discovered yet."

Trent rolled his eyes back to the crime scene. "Let's just pray there's no need for that."

"Why?" Carlos defended. "Are you saying I don't look good in bright orange?"

"No offense, buddy, but I don't think Kath would favor that color right now."

Carlos hung his head in shame. "Oh, yeah. I forgot about that." He perked up. "But what about blue?"

Trent's only answer was a laugh as he stepped away from Carlos only to see a glimmer of something nearby. Starting toward it, Trent stooped low, reaching beneath the inch of space below the closed silver gate and drawing the item to himself.

Turning it over in his hands as he stood to his feet, a curious Carlos was soon beside him. "What is it?"

Trent shrugged, not exactly sure himself as he turned what appeared to be a piece of jewelry of some sort over to read the inscription. _To Jack, From Gail_ , it read.

Carlos smiled. "So now we have two couples named Jack and Gail. That must have been the dead man's name."

Trent shook his head, raising it suddenly as a thought occurred to him. He clasped the locket firmly in hand and sighed. "It's got to be the same person."

"You've lost me."

"Think about it, Carlos. We're looking for a third person who was here when Kath chased down the thief."

"Okay," Carlos urged Trent to go on.

"Kath _was_ trying to tell us something."

Carlos followed Trent as Trent hurried away. "That's a pretty long shot, Trent. What if it has nothing to do with each other?"

Trent sighed as he strode intently towards the mall's faraway exit. "All I know is that her cell mate was named Gail and had a boyfriend named Jack. And that we just found something here with those same names on it."

Carlos was still doubtful but didn't say a word. It didn't seem like the two had a strong connection. But at the same time, he was almost willing to believe anything if it would help get Kath out of that prison.

##

Hope finally came into view for Gail as she saw that cabin about a hundred yards away from her tucked just behind the blazing sunshine overhead. It was almost noon, but she didn't care. She had managed to evade the authorities thus far. What was a little sunlight when freedom lay just ahead?

Looking both ways as she emerged from some brush, Gail hurried across the open grass and over the gravel drive, ducking past Jack's old pickup before she rapped a few knocks on the door. As she waited, a smile played on her lips while thoughts of Jack came rushing through her mind. She'd finally be able to see him again. And they would finally be free to be together. Cory was gone. Now it was only the two of them and the trail ahead, however fast they could run towards it while they had a good lucky streak.

As the door's opening interrupted her reverie, Gail grinned when she saw Jack's face. "Hi, Jack. I'm sorry I'm late. Escaping prison can make a body tired. I sort of lounged in some brush somewhere south of here. I hope you don't mind."

Jack shook his head. "No, I don't mind at all."

Gail was a bit confused as Jack simply stood there, not inviting her in. "Did you happen to get me a change of clothes with Cory's money? I'm dying to get out of this orange."

"Jack!" A voice from inside called out. Its tone was low and its pitch feminine. "Jack? Who's that at the door?"

Gail felt her face flush and heat rise into her cheeks. But she kept her lips shut, quelling the anger that rose into words inside her throat. "Jack, please tell me it's just you and me here."

Jack seemed torn as he turned back inside. "Just a second, Bonnie love. I'll be right back." He then shut the cabin door, easing Gail to the side to speak with her. "I don't know how to tell you this. Bonnie and me, we hooked up about a month ago. We both needed money so we figured two going at it was better than one. What have I always told you? It's better to always have backup."

Jack ended with a smile that Gail quickly slapped off of his face. "How dare you! I risked my neck out there last night! And you've been here with that doll-face jellyfish all this time?!"

"I never thought she'd fall in love with me!"

Gail scoffed. "Oh, so it was just a one-way street?!"

Jack inhaled and exhaled sharply. "What did you expect me to do?"

"Wait for me!"

"I can't believe this," Jack spouted in disbelief. "I had that dumb husband of yours killed so that we could be together. And this is how you repay me?"

"And you're just Mr. Innocent, huh?"

Suddenly, an unmarked police issue turned onto the gravel road and stopped while still a distance away.

Gail panicked, instantly recognizing Carlos from the prison. "You got to get me out of here, Jack! That's a cop. And he'll recognize me!"

Jack was busy suppressing his own panic as he thought through a solution as quickly as he could. "Go around back. There's some clothes just inside the back entrance."

Gail hurried away as quick as she could before the Detective climbed from the driver's seat and approached a surprisingly calm Jack at the entrance of the cabin.

"Good afternoon," Jack smiled. "What can I do for you folks? You aren't lost are you?"

"Nope." Carlos tried his best not to smile as he pulled a slip of paper from inside his leather coat. "My name is Detective Sandoval, and this here is Detective Kelly. We have a warrant to search your cabin."

"On what grounds?" Jack argued.

"On the grounds that we suspect a weapon fired by a now deceased Cory Marshall is in your cabin as we speak," Detective Kelly countered with a grin. "We suspect it was owned illegally."

Jack feigned a surrender and was stepping aside when he yelled at Gail and Bonnie to make a run for it just before striking Carlos in the face. Detective Kelly drew her weapon before Jack could throw another punch. Carlos had stumbled but not fallen when the blow struck him. And as he regained his balance, he quickly reached for a pair of handcuffs. Detective Kelly then holstered her gun, charging around the cabin towards a runaway Gail who was nearly to the edge of the woods by the time she then tripped over some brush, giving Theresa enough time to catch up. Admittedly, Theresa doubted if she'd be able to hold down the fighting woman as she struggled to get the cuffs onto the writhing, screaming menace. Yet hauling her back was almost a pleasure as she stopped next to Carlos with the escaped convict and gave him a sigh as she caught her breath before putting her in the back of the car.

##

"I tell you what," C.D. paused to set two cups of steaming coffee in front of Trent and Alex at the bar. "I really hope Carlos finds the varmint that set our Katheryn up and tell him a thing or two."

"Yeah." Trent took a sip of his coffee. "I'd like to tell the guy a thing or two myself."

Alex sipped on her coffee too before turning to Trent. "So when is Molly coming back home?"

Trent took a deep breath, setting his mug down. "Day after tomorrow I think. She called the house last night and said she really wishes she were here."

"So how is things between you and that gal?" C.D. smiled, a twinkle in his eye as he wiped the counter directly in front of Trent.

Trent looked from C.D. to Alex, somewhat annoyed. "What do you mean? Molly and I are just friends."

"If you say so, son," C.D. shook his head, raising a finger, "But if you asked me, I think you and that Mason girl are a mighty good-looking couple."

"C.D.!" Alex reprimanded him with a light laugh.

"What?" C.D. was sharp in his response, unsure what he had done wrong.

Alex glared at him for a moment, glancing over to a rather pale young man at her side before Carlos strode in from outside, dodging some other patrons as he found his way up to the bar. A wave of relief passed over Trent as he greeted his best friend, thankful for the diversion.

Carlos smiled and took a seat on the barstool next to Trent. "Got some good news."

Alex leaned forward to look at Carlos, all three of them waiting to hear the news.

"Gail rolled on Jack. When she found out that Jack had taken up with another woman, she was very eager to tell us about everything he had planned."

"So?" Trent urged Carlos onward.

"Well, Gail was married to a guy named Cory Marshall. But she wanted to run away with Jack. The only problem was money. Marshall had some money hidden somewhere west of Dallas. All they had to do was get rid of Cory and find the money. So Jack convinced Cory to rob a jewelry store in the mall. And then he waited for the right moment to frame an innocent bystander of the murder or at least trap a cop. Jack snatched the weapon and jewelry before Kath even saw him. Gail was arrested for theft about two days before they first planned to carry the plan out about a month ago. That's when he hooked up with some girl named Bonnie to probably rob some banks to make some extra cash."

Alex shook her head in disbelief. "Wow."

Trent sighed. "Yeah, but how do we know Gail didn't invent this story just to get revenge on her secret lover?"

After grinning broadly, Carlos answered, "Remember that letter Katheryn said she got a look at?"

Trent nodded.

"Well, it seems Jack told Gail some very fine details about what he did and where he did it. Even who he managed to frame."

"You're kidding."

"Nope." Carlos couldn't stop smiling. "And we found Cory's weapon, the stolen jewelry, and the letters all inside the cabin."

Alex finished her coffee and rose, reaching eagerly for her purse. "I'll get over to the courthouse right away. I'm sure with this evidence, the charges on Katheryn will be dropped immediately."

"I'll go with you," Trent insisted and followed alongside Carlos out of the restaurant after bidding C.D. goodbye.

Carlos groaned some as he walked, rubbing at his arm.

"What's up with you?" Trent opened the door for Alex before Carlos exited and then Trent.

"Well, it wasn't five minutes after we interrogated Gail that we got a tip on Donny Thompson. We took him down after I was able to get ahold of Walker. Seems his cohorts like flying out of broken windows." He raised an eyebrow with a scoff. "So we had a bit of a collision with the front yard."

Trent paused on the sidewalk before they would have to part ways to their separate vehicles. "Maybe you should head home and rest then," he teased.

Carlos scoffed and started for his police issue. "Not a chance." He imagined and secretly hoped that there was a strong chance Katheryn would be released from prison that very afternoon.


	6. Part 6

**Texas vs. Beaumont** PART SIX

(final part)

The sun was just barely beginning to set when Carlos brought his Durango to a stop outside the prison gates. They were somewhat early, but he didn't really care. A short phone call and one hour of waiting was all it took to get the charges against Katheryn dropped for good. What was ten more minutes of waiting? An eternity of course. But it would all be worth it.

As Carlos turned off the engine and stepped out of the vehicle, giving Trent and Alex time to get out also, everything that they had gone through this past week played over again in his mind like a movie. Over and over he saw what that inmate had done to Katheryn. He also saw the pain in her eyes. He had seen fear from the woman who was fearless. He had seen doubt from the woman who usually helped him to see the bright side of things most of the time. Carlos could also recognize her strength. Even in such a dark place, she had tried saving Gail from her own destruction. But as is the case with those who chose the destructive path, they never usually listen to reason. For their own selfish desires blind them from realizing what dire mistakes they are making.

Side by side, Carlos, Trent, and Alex stood waiting until the sound of the guard opening the gate drew their gazes. Katheryn was wearing a plain pair of jeans and a solid-red blouse. Her blonde hair was tied back together at her neck and looped through a Texas Ranger baseball cap; and she carried a light jacket in hand. A brand new pair of tennis shoes completed her rather sporty attire of which she was fond to wear on occasion.

The prison gate squeaked ever so slightly as the guard let Katheryn through before securing it tightly behind her. The sound it made as it fell back into place was an unusual comfort to Katheryn. And it only took her two seconds to spot Carlos, Trent, and Alex before she forgot everything bad that had happened and rushed over to them, immediately welcomed by Carlos' open arms as she threw her arms around him. It was no surprise that her jacket was soon abandoned to the concrete beneath them as they embraced.

Trent and Alex looked on with smiles before easing in for their own hugs.

"Don't forget about us," Trent teased, wrapping his arms around Katheryn.

Katheryn wiped away the tears from her eyes as she drew away from Trent and gave Alex a hug. "Oh, I could never forget you all. Never." She pulled away from Alex's embrace with a glance over to Carlos. "Not in a million years."

Katheryn then cleared her throat, getting a hold of her stirred emotions. "Alex, what will happen to Gail?"

"Well," Alex sighed. "Her sentence was quite a long one. Theft and being an accomplice to murder is no picnic even if it was circumstantial. But Judge Ortiz has reduced her sentence since she gave up Jack and Bonnie who were also linked to several other crimes in the Dallas area."

Katheryn nodded, glancing up at the dimming skies. "It's so good to be out here."

"I know," Alex assured Katheryn, softly squeezing her arm to draw her gaze. "I know exactly how you feel. And if you need someone to talk to, don't hesitate to call me up anytime."

"What am I? Chopped liver?" Carlos inserted with a frown.

"No, silly." Katheryn smiled and punched Carlos gently on the arm. "There's just some things only women can talk about to each other."

"Oh, I see." Carlos rolled his eyes over to Trent.

Trent's laughter slowly died off before he stepped up next to Kath, giving her a brotherly pat on the back. "What do you say we go home?"

Katheryn's smile could not have been bigger if she tried. "That sounds absolutely perfect."

By the time they neared 118 Providence Way, darkness covered the entire city, sunset having ending just a short while ago. In its place was a clear sky filled with stars and a full moon shining overhead. As Katheryn watched from her place in the front seat of Carlos' vehicle, she couldn't help but smile. She was typically fond of the sight. But something about seeing them tonight made it even more special.

Carlos noticed her reverie and cast a smile her way. "Penny for your thoughts?"

Katheryn turned a smile back to him. "That's what you said to me the first day we met. You remember?"

Carlos nodded. "Yep. I sure do. I also remember how fond you were of watching the scenery just like you're doing now."

Taking notice of Katheryn as she reclined her hand on the middle console of the vehicle, Carlos hesitated. He turned his eyes back to the road quickly, but in the darkness of the vehicle, he slowly slipped his own hand over to hers. Even though they weren't alone, neither of them seemed to mind.

As they pulled up into the Malloy's driveway, Katheryn noticed how desolate it was outside. Not even the porch lights were on which was very uncharacteristic for Mrs. Malloy who always was sure to have the lights on if she was expecting company.

What struck Katheryn as even more odd was the fact that none of the windows hardly were lit. Glancing at the digital clock inside the SUV, Katheryn grimaced. It was only eight o'clock. "I wonder where everyone is," she questioned, turning to Carlos. But she was ignored.

Alex tapped Katheryn from behind as she unbuckled her seatbelt. "Let's go check it out."

With a sigh and nod, Kath unbuckled also, following Carlos, Alex, and Trent as they led the way up to the side entrance of the home.

Trent was just about to reach for the knob when he stopped abruptly and turned to Carlos with a snap of his fingers. "Oh, I almost forgot something." He then hurried away back to the vehicle, leaving Katheryn slightly befuddled.

"You know," Carlos inserted. "Why don't we use the front door this time?" He waited to see Kath's response. She nodded vaguely, still very confused. Carlos grinned his approval before he stepped aside so Katheryn could go ahead of him. This only served to increase her curiosity. These two guys might be the best crime-solvers in Dallas next to the Rangers. But they were awful at hiding things.

The trio's footsteps gently mingled with the sound of the cicadas, dulled out only somewhat as they heard the slam of Carlos' SUV door. Katheryn assumed Trent had retrieved whatever it was he had forgotten.

"Well," Carlos urged, pointing to the door as they stood there in silence. "Open it up."

Katheryn glared at him, squinting as she tried to figure out what he was up to. "Why are you acting so strange tonight?"

"Me? Strange?" Carlos acted as if he didn't know what she was talking about.

"Go on," Alex chuckled. "It's alright."

With a nod, Katheryn replied, "Well, here goes nothing I guess." She then stepped forward, her nerves tensed as she wouldn't let herself relax just yet. A week in prison would supposedly do that to even the bravest of people.

"Welcome home!" a choir of voices shouted as every light in the house suddenly turned on.

Katheryn's jaw dropped, a smile glinting against her pale face as she felt her heart skip a beat. She raised a hand to cover her mouth as Molly hurried from the little crowd with arms open wide to give her a tear-filled embrace. Directly behind Molly was the Malloy kids followed closely by Roscoe and Adam while Ranger Walker and Trivette completed the first cluster of the welcome committee. To the side was another little group consisting of Ranger Hunt, Butch McMann, C.D., Mr. Cahill, and Detective Kelly.

Before Katheryn had a chance to take it in fully, Trent emerged from behind the little group, having come in the house through the side entrance and sneaked past the stairs to the front of them all. He smiled and extended an envelope to Katheryn. "Happy Birthday."

Kath held Trent's gaze in disbelief, reaching limply for the envelope. "How—how did you know it was my birthday?"

Trent glanced over Katheryn's shoulder to a smiling Molly who shrugged as Katheryn turned around to look at her.

"You guys," Kath scoffed, grinning as she slit the envelope open. Inside was a folded piece of paper. A letter of some sort, Katheryn assumed, unfolding it slowly and carefully before she read silently.

"Well," Alex urged, peeking over Kath's shoulder. "What's it say?"

"'Dear Katheryn, Ranger Walker recently told me that you are a fan of mine. He also stated that you are a talented singer. Well, if you're available when I'm in town the week of the twenty-first, I'd love to have you on stage with me for a song or two. Good luck with all the great work that you, the Rangers, and Trent Malloy do. All the best to you, Miss Beaumont. I look forward to meeting you soon. God Bless, Collin Raye.'" Katheryn's eyes went wide with smiles as she finished that last part just before nearly leaping towards Trent with an embrace. "Thank you so much, Trent."

Trent laughed and pointed towards Walker as Katheryn pulled away, her pale face turning back to its normal shade. "You should really be thanking Walker. He arranged everything."

Katheryn strode over to Ranger Walker and offered him an embrace also. "Thank you, Ranger Walker. This means so much to me!"

"You're welcome, Katheryn," Walker answered, a broad grin on his face.

Trivette elbowed Walker as he drew away from the embrace, smiling at Katheryn. "Good thing you made it back in time. Wouldn't that have been bad?! Showing up to a party without the gift for the guest of honor. Pfft!"

Walker rolled his eyes and sighed. "Trivette, Trent had it under control. Besides, it didn't take that long to wrap things up after I fought Bolt."

"Yeah," Trivette shook his head with a scoff. "They never learn, huh?"

"Nope." Walker shook his head also, forlornly picturing Bolt as he fell over the building roof to his death. "They never do."

Gordon Cahill then weaved his way in between Walker and Trivette with a glance to them both, reaching out a hand to Katheryn. "Well, I'm glad to see that justice prevailed. I only regret that I didn't have a chance to represent you in court."

Katheryn shook Mr. Cahill's hand firmly. "No offense Mr. Cahill," she smiled, "but I'm kind of glad you didn't."

"I second that," Carlos wrapped an arm around Katheryn with a smile before wrinkling his forehead. "That is, not that I'm sure you wouldn't have been able to defend Katheryn well, Mr. Cahill."

Mr. Cahill's face lit up with a smile. "I know what you mean, son. Besides, you didn't do half bad yourself." He paused, looking from Carlos to Katheryn and back again. "You two make a good team. I can tell."

Katheryn looked up into Carlos' eyes with a broadening smile of her own. "I think I agree with you on that one, Mr. Cahill." Reluctantly, Katheryn eased from Carlos' arm to catch a glimpse around the corner into the dining room. She could barely tell that Mrs. Malloy was hard at work in the kitchen. "Carlos," Kath whispered. "I'm going to go say hello to Mrs. Malloy." She pecked a kiss on his cheek before hurrying away.

"Yep," Mr. Cahill exhaled sharply as Alex walked up next to him and Carlos excused himself to go speak with Detective Kelly. "Those two make a mighty handsome couple."

Alex nodded. "I wouldn't be surprised one bit if they're married soon."

"Now, Alex," Walker nudged up next to Alex. "Don't be playing matchmaker."

"Who's playing matchmaker?" Alex shrugged in her own defense. "It's clear they found each other with no help from anyone else."

"Oh is that right?" Trivette inserted from nearby with a smirk. "I seem to remember it was you who suggested Katheryn for that case last August."

Alex rolled her eyes softly. "But I had no idea they would even become friends. Honest."

"Right!" Trivette hid a tight lipped smile as he took a sip of punch.

Nearby next to the foot of the stairs, Theresa held a cup of punch of her own, offering Carlos a nod towards the kitchen. "You want some punch?"

Carlos exhaled, slipping his hands into his jeans' pockets. "No, I'm fine. I'll get some in a little bit."

"So," Theresa's eyes sparkled mischievously. "Were you ever going to finish telling me about that date you had with Katheryn in the gun store?"

Carlos chuckled lightly, his voice deepening somewhat as he recalled their earlier conversation. "Well, there really isn't much to tell. I helped her buy her pistol, and we left."

Theresa cocked a smile. "I know you're hiding something. But I'll let you keep your little secret."

Carlos arched a brow. "What do you mean? I'm not hiding anything."

"Still," Theresa handed Carlos her empty punch glass. "I think I'll have to ask Katheryn what really happened."

"Suit yourself," Carlos called out after Theresa as she crossed the room to say hello to the Rangers. He then glanced at the punch cup in his hands and proceeded towards the kitchen through the dining room just behind him.

Trent meanwhile noticed that Molly was nowhere near as he glanced into the living room, a hand on the doorframe while he turned back to the foyer with a glance towards the staircase. With a furrowed brow, the sound of some object falling suddenly drew his gaze to Thunder's office straight ahead. Slowly, he followed the sound, easing the sliding door open some more to see Molly stooped low on the floor, gathering several books from the floor.

Molly raised a smile to Trent. "Oh, I didn't hear you come in. Your mom said there was an old cookbook of hers in here that I could have. I wanted to make something special for Kath's first breakfast back home." Molly shrugged. "Turns out I'm a bit clumsy."

Trent bent down to help her gather the fallen books, glancing up to see where they had fallen from. "Here. Let me." Trent then reached for the books Molly was holding before standing back to his full height and climbing the ladder to replace the books on the shelf. He then noticed the book his mom had referred Molly to and took it from the shelf.

Smiling as Trent handed her the book, Molly sighed. "I'm sorry."

Trent set a solid stance back onto the main floor and winked. "No need to apologize. Just between you and me, I did that probably more times than I can count. You should see the dents in the books I've dropped."

Molly's soft laugh echoed between them. "Thanks."

Trent nodded. "You're welcome."

Molly quickly set her hand on Trent's arm. "Not just for the book." She glanced at the book in her arms as if it didn't mean anything to her anymore before she noticed the curiosity in Trent's eyes. "Thank you for keeping me sane while I was out of town. Your calls were about the only thing that helped me to believe Kath was going to be okay."

Trent hesitated to speak, unsure if words would truly convey what he wanted to say. Instead, he pressed a kiss on Molly's lips before slipping his hand into hers. "It was the least I could do."

"Katheryn!" Tandy's voice echoed through the house as she hurried into the kitchen where Katheryn and Mrs. Malloy were conversing over a fresh cup of tea. "Look!" The little girl got on her tip toes and turned her right ear towards Katheryn. "I got my ears pierced!"

Katheryn smiled as she got a better look. "They're beautiful!"

"I took her the other day to cheer her up some," Mrs. Malloy inserted with a smile.

"Well it seems to have done the trick," Katheryn laughed gently along with Tandy, touching the tip of her finger to the girl's nose.

"Katheryn, honey," C.D. announced his presence as he neared the ladies upon excusing himself from the lively conversations elsewhere. "I just wanted to let you know that I'm in no hurry for you to get my memoires done. You don't have to worry your sweet head about that right now. You just get back to life as normal." He smiled.

"C.D.," Kath beamed. "I'm more eager than ever to get those stories of yours written down. It was one of the many things that helped me wake up every morning while I was in that place."

"That is, she'll be glad to help once she's rested up a bit," Carlos inserted, ambling around to put his empty punch cup in the sink before slipping around to put his arm around Katheryn.

"Oh, really?" Katheryn grinned up into his brown eyes.

"Yep," Carlos cleared his throat. "And maybe go on a date with a certain someone."

"And who would that be?" Katheryn teased.

Snickers drifted across the room.

Carlos shrugged before splitting the silence by planting a kiss on Katheryn's lips. Tandy clasped her hand over her mouth, suppressing a giggle.

"Alright, you," Mrs. Malloy shooed her youngest towards the dining room and eyed C.D. to follow.

As Katheryn felt Carlos draw her closer to him, his smile shining over her as he drew away, Katheryn almost forgot about everything that had happened over the course of the past several days. In fact, if she tried hard enough, she could almost see her future in the shady gray of her renewed imagination. And it almost looked exactly like everything her eyes could see and her heart could feel in that unmistakably perfect moment.


End file.
